Houston forms partnership with Houston Community College to provide emergency service training to city's firefighters

Houston Community College and the city of Houston announced a three-year agreement Nov. 10 designed to train Houston firefighters in emergency medical services.

“Every employee trained is one more skilled first responder able to help our community mitigate the impact of an event that threatens our citizens or property," HCC Chancellor Cesar Maldonado said.

The agreement will make use of HCC's Resiliency Center of Excellence, a $30 million investment unveiled in April at the system's Northeast Campus. However, training is also available for other campuses, Maldonado said at a Nov. 10 event also attended by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner.

The center was launched with the goal of helping Houston better prepare for the next big flooding event while also offering training for other hazards, including freezes, fires, chemical hazards and pandemics.

By offering the training to residents, business owners and community organizations, officials said they hope to be able to reduce loss of life and increase economic stability in the region by lowering risks. Training includes disaster simulation, Community Emergency Response Team programs, rescue safety, safe debris removal and business continuity during disasters, among others.

The firefighter announcement comes on the heels of memorandum of understanding signed by Houston and HCC in August to train 500,000 citizens, employees, volunteers and first responders in the city. Programs started this fall, after a summer launch targeted small and large businesses.